This disclosure relates to the field of retail product display units. More specifically, the disclosure relates to retail product display units having a pusher to urge product packages loaded thereon toward a forward end of the display unit. The present disclosure further relates to product displays that may be assembled in different configurations depending on the specific needs of the user. The disclosure further relates to improved function pushers for such display units.
Retail product displays comprise pusher operated display units. One example of a pusher operate retail product display unit is described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,823,874 issued to Hardy. Such display units comprise one or more product “lanes” in which product containers are confined to a space that enables the product packages to be arranged in one or more lines extending from a rearwardmost product package to a barrier at a front end of the lane which restricts the packages from moving forward beyond the barrier. A pusher is coupled by a biasing device such as a flat coil spring so as to urge the pusher toward the barrier. The pusher thus maintains contact with the rearwardmost product package in a lane and as product packages are removed by consumers from the lane the pusher maintains forward biasing on the remaining product packages. Thus the forwardmost package remaining in the lane is urged into contact with the barrier for ready removal by a consumer or a merchandiser.
Pusher type retail product display units are generally assembled to at least the lane level prior to shipment to a user of such displays. Further, the product display units may be configurable for only one type of product package or one size of product package.
During replenishing product packages in a lane, the user may urge the pusher by hand toward the back of the product display unit and then load additional product packages in the space between the reardwardmost package remaining on the display unit. Such hand operation of the pusher may be difficult because force is applied to the upper end of the pusher face as a practical matter, and such force applied to the pusher tends to cause the pusher to frictionally engage the bottom of the product lane. Such frictional engagement may make moving the pusher difficult for the user.